Thursday, June 30, 2011

Updated: The blogger Apanama, who goes with the name @firdyfire on Twitter, says @5xmom is on the payroll of a communications outfit that reports to the Chief Minister of Penang. Read (pictures, too) If not SEDITION, what is it?

Original Article:

@5xmom: I think all Christians shud march for all the persecution they had done to us and our Lord.

Twitter can be a dark place when people start to have dark thoughts and lose their way. It takes very little - a splash of yellow here and a rush of red there - to get a person madly excited. And when you get mad and excited, you start being irrational and you begin inciting others. Today you "think" all Christians should go out there on the streets and march. Show them you have the numbers and you have great anger. Today, too, another idiot like you but who happens to be a Muslim might get mad with you and start thinking that maybe all Muslims should march for all the insults you have thrown at them all these years. And then the Hindus. And then the Buddhists. And so on.

We live in peace in one country with many places of worship, many beliefs, many gods. If we want our children to continue to enjoy such a wonderful place, please don't think like @5xmom.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Original postingSo, what are you going to do about it, yb Zahid?
Click here for the link.

Our Defence Minister said in Parliament to a question by YB KJ that our airspace had been repeatedly violated by the Singaporeans. 2508 times since 2008! But now they are saying that YB Zahid Hamidi talked cock. They are not just flatly denying it. The way I read it is they are implying that we don't know how to read the radar.

"Where fligths did not exist ... non-Singaporean commercial aircraft flying over Malaysia ACCORDING to international air traffic, rules and regulations ..".

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Once Malaysians understand the context--- especially the ulterior motives--- they will be wary about July 9. They will be able to distinguish the self-serving agenda of a deeply flawed politician from the genuine quest for electoral reform and political transformation. They should not allow such a politician to undermine their future. - Chandra Muzaffar.

If you really must walk, you may as well be an enlightened walker. Read this enlightening piece by the former Parti Keadilan Nasional deputy presidentH E R E.

Monday, June 27, 2011

OK, let's stop pretending Bersih is not one of Anwar's many apps. Anwar took credit for the 2007 Bersih and he'll be taking full credit for this one if nothing goes too awry. Oh, so you know that? My apologies. But I bet you do not know about the EIGHT DEMANDS he is making? Read what they are H E R E.

I have left the following response in Apanama's comment box.

Dear Apanama,

The last three demands have nothing to do whatsoever with "clean and fair elections", which is what Bersih was supposed to be about. 6. Strengthen public institutions 7. Stop corruption and 8. Stop dirty politics are not within SPR's job scope. A 6-yr old can tell you that.

So I will comment on the first FIVE DEMANDS:

1. Clean the electoral rollYes, the SPR needs to clean the electoral roll. We can make its job easier if those voters who have moved out from their kampungs register their new addresses in the cities/towns with the local SPR. Eg Anwar Ibrahim. He is still registered as a voter in Permatang Pauh when his home is no longer there. Another example is Rocky's Bru. He is registered as a phantom voter in Sungai Rapat, Perak but he lives in Puchong. (In my case, I will help the SPR clean the electoral roll by updating my address ahead of the PRU13)

3. Use of indelible ink Aiya, so ancient. Use biometric lah .. The Causeway/Immigration issue with biometric is an exception, don't be deterred.

4. Minimum 21 days campaign Period Sure, our first election in 1955 provided for 42 days' campaign. But there was no internet, mobile phone and Proton back then. Okay, eight days may be too short lah. Two weeks should be about right.

5. Free and fair access to media Pakatan goverments barred mainstream media from official functions in Penang and Kedah. They don't have any business asking for free and fair access to media when the media do not have free and fair access to how they conduct their affairs.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

99.99 percent him. At the GLC Open Day's forum yesterday, everybody was talking about this. Amazingly, some people still have reservations. Luckily, the "experts" are leading American authorities, otherwise there have been more than some doubters. Malaysians usually take foreign experts, even the likes of Pornthip, more seriously.

Quotes for the title of this blogpost is taken from SatD's 80:20 Vs 99.99% Certainty: A Look at Malaysians' Perception.If you are one of the 0.01 per cent, a very rear species indeed, read the posting.This guy is so scientific, I tell you. He's hardly done a posting without using graphs, tables, pie-charts, etc. SatD also discusses the credentials of the two experts who said that the Anwar Ibrahim sex video was genuine, ie not doctored, and facial recognition on the man in the video is 99.99 per cent certain to be Anwar Ibrahim.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Ever since they were created, blogs have been one of the biggest critics of our GLCs. Today, the Facebook and micro-blogging, esp Twitter, could be a pain in the neck for these corporations. Sometimes, this new media would carry great exposes. But other times, the half-truths and unverified "news" do more harm than good. How can the GLCs win over the Social Media? Or can it?

Kurang ajar comments. Thanks, Mahaguru, for the image. The Muslim Bloggers Association prez used the cartoon to make his point in Malaysiakini siar komen celupar hina Islam... He is peeved at the Government for not taking action against hate-mongers and racist instigators who write hurtful stuff about Islam. He has a point. I won't ask (also, I don't expect) Hishammuddin to issue yet another warning here. I'd rather go with Apanama's suggestion that the news portal openly apologize for those comments and promise to be more vigilant. We can't allow such commenters take away the wonder of our media freedom. Read hisSeditious comments a la Malaysiakini.
p.s. Syed Akbar Ali was charged for sedition for writing less sterner stuff about Islam than the following comments published by the portal. Remember Hasan Skodeng? He was charged with a criminal offence for writing a satire against Tenaga!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

LATEST:Poll manipulated, says the Star.
Kit Siang and Malaysiakini are going to town with the results of a poll on Bersih conducted by the Star, which is a pro-Government paper. The results purportedly found that more than 99 per cent of the respondents said YES, the Bersih walk should be allowed! (See my posting at the bottom of this page). The Government has said the Bersih walk on July 9 will be an unlawful event as no permit will be issued.

The Star says it suspects the poll has been manipulated. Pro-Bersih main kotor, an editor sms-ed me a while ago.

Original article

Petekma: Bersih rally a nuisance. Trust Bernama to interview taxi drivers, H E R E. Err, actually, the national news agency spoke to just ONE taxi driver but the article said it conducted a survey among cabbies and found that they are generally against the July 9 rally. Bernama did talk to the deputy president association of taxi/limousine drivers and operators' association or Petekma, which represents some 25,000 taxi drivers/operators in the Klang Valley, although the article failed to mention it.
Proposed solution for Ambiga: Order the 100,000 protesters to go to the Bersih walk by cab!

There's another suggestion in an email chat group I'm involved in that Ambiga, Ibrahim Ali and Khairy tell their protesters to bring along a broom each and help sweep the city's roads and sidewalks clean while they do their walk..

The Star, meanwhile, is said to have brought down an online poll it was conducting after purportedly more than 99 per cent respondents said YES to whether the Bersih walk should be allowed to take place! Malaysiakini has a screenshot of it and Kit Siang is going to town with it.

After the mosque election fiasco, Lim Guan Eng the Penang chief minister is saying that his government and state exco were not involved at all in the plan, which has been shot down unceremoniously by the Yang diPertuan Agong. But the blogger SatD is not buying Lim's claim. Read ... Lu Mau Kincing Lagi Ka?

I think SatD makes his point, clear as day. Can't piss on everybody all the time, mate.

On June 17, the Malaysian Insider reported that the government had bypassed a recommendation by executives of Syarikat Prasarana by awarding an LRT extension contract to Bombardier, one of the three companies involved in the tender. Read Putrajaya overrules Prasarana, takes pricier LRT deal.

Then Singapore Straits Times came up with a report to say that after the Insider report, the government has gotten cold feet and is changing its mind and will award the tender to Colas, the other party in the running (according to Malaysian Insider's sources, Syarikat Prasarana executives had recommended Balfour Beatty, which tendered the lowest price among the three joint venture companies). Read Now Putrajaya hands LRT deal to UK firm ahead of visit.

It looks to me that there's very active lobbying here, either among the three contenders for the project or some people in Prasarana, or both. And they are using newspapers and portals to help their cause. I know that Bombardier is the preferred choice of someone powerful but he does not sit in the committee chaired by the Prime Minister.

And the project, in actual fact, has NOT been awarded. Expect an announcement later today.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Accidents happen, says NATO. At least 15 people were killed in a NATO airstrike early today on a residential compound near Sorman, to the west of Tripoli, today June 20. Read h e r e. Yesterday, nine civilians were accidentally murdered in similar raids. It was good of NATO to admit that its warplanes didn’t all hit intended targets during the night raid and it may have caused “a number of civilian casualties.”

NATO's apology comes from an old script. In Afghanistan end of last month, it said sorry when its raids unintentionally murdered women and children.

I don't hear protests from the people around me who had hailed the US-backed invasion of Egypt and Libya ...

Things to do and places to go on July 9 if you are in KL. I've just been informed by @faidzsanusi that Ramli Sarip, the grand old man of rock for this part of the world, will be performing at Stadium Merdeka with the legendary Blues Gang. W.o.W.

Wow because on the same day, Bersih, which touts itself as a group concerned with free and fair elections in Malaysia, will be organizing a mammoth rally in Kuala Lumpur, basically for the benefit of the Pakatan Rakyat's agenda (PAS alone has promised to bring 100,000 people to the so-called Yellow Walk).

And Wow because another group led by Perkasa's Ibrahim Ali (an MP who stood on PAS-Pakatan ticket in 2008 but has since become one of the biggest thorns on their side) is planning a counter-march on the same day. (Perkasa boasts of 20 associate NGOs and the subtle support of some Umno members not so much because of Ibrahim Ali but because Tun Dr Mahathir attends Perkasa's functions).

Triple wow for Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, who is the son-in-law of former PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, has also pledged to lead another walk and come to loggerheads with Anwar-Ambiga's Bersih and Ibrahim's Bersih.

So the rock concert will be the only legit gathering on that day, @faidzsanusi observes on Twitter and that's the one I hope to join although the other walks will surely discourage concert-goers from going out. The last time Bersih held a walk, most Malaysians were peeved with the police for using water canons on the protesters. Now, however, a lot of people are hoping that the police and the Home Ministry would act tough on the protesters. Some are openly supporting the use of the Internal Security Act on the organizers of Bersih, Ibrahim, and KJ walks.

Personally, I don't find anything wrong with people wanting to walk to express their sentiments about matters that affect them. That is their democratic right. Trade unions organize pickets for the same purpose, and pickets are better than strikes. Just as peaceful walks are better than riots and street clashes. I have participated in walks here and while I was overseas.

Back inNovember 2007, when Bersih organised their first massive Yellow march that was televised on Aljazeera and made famous by Zainuddin Maidin's (the Information Minister then) moronic comments, I walked with them in the intermittent rain. I managed to avoid the water canons and certainly did my part to make it a peaceful walk. Many of us enjoyed the walk although it was disappointing to learn that the Opposition leaders had hijacked the walk by showing up "unexpectedly" at the gates of the Istana when the memorandum to the Agong was handed over. We had been assured that the walk would not be hijacked by Anwar Ibrahim and Gang. The night before the walk, Raja Petra Kamaruddin dropped by the National Press Club at Jalan Tangsi, KL to distribute yellow tee-shirts for the walk and some posters. He told us that Anwar, Kit Siang or any of the Opposition leaders would not be present throughout the Bersih walk. Some of us were NOT going to walk if these politicians were going to join the walk.

There's no pretense about who owns Bersih now, we all know that this is a Pakatan Rakyat show, we all know that Anwar Ibrahim is boss and Ambiga is not the boss. PAS has promsied 100,000 bodies for the walk. DAP and PKR, too. It is not a Rakyat's walk. It is a Pakatan Rakyat's walk.

And no more Pak Lah to help bring down, so I shall count myself out.

I also took part in the anti-Tony Blair proteston April 25 last year, the one Ibrahim Ali promised that thousands of slippers would be thrown at the former British PM. The slippers were missing and only a hundred or so protesters turned up. If Ibrahim wants to make an impact on July 9, he will have to do better than that.

I took part in a walk in February 2010 that bloggers organised (and which KJ got involved in) against the Australian MPswho ran down our judiciary. That was peaceful, too, and more sizeable than the Tony Blair's demo.

If the organisers can assure the three parties can walk peacefully, fine. But going by the political nature of the people involved, I think that will be a challenge. The police will have to work overtime to ensure no untoward

incident.

Some people say the police should take pre-emptive measures, iearrest the organisers (namely Ambiga, Ibrahim, and KJ) to foil their protests.

I'd rather, though, if all the protesters make their way to Stadium Merdeka and together we'll sway to great music. Music heals the soul, man.

Let the International experts tell us. I am no expert in rare earths. Neither are, I bet, most of the people who are protesting big time against the decision by the Government to process rare earths ore from Australia in Gebeng, Pahang for export. Those processed rare earths metals are commonly used in the making of your computer's disk drive, my flat screen display at home, and everyone's mobile phones. Operative word: "commonly".

The project is going to bring in billions to Gebeng and the Malaysian economy, provide jobs, enrich some cronies and their cronies, blah blah blah. But is it unsafe? You and I will have to rely on the experts to tell us this. We cannot expect the people who are organising anti-Lynas protests, who are probably the same people organising the Bersih demonstration, who are most likely the same people behind Hindraf, the porn video of the Anwar Ibrahim lookalike, and the Malaysian political circus, to tell us that IT IS SAFE or IT IS UNSAFE.

Let the experts tell them and tell us if it is or it's not.

Fortunately, the experts have been called in and have been studying the Lynas project. They will be completing their report on Lynas and the rare earths project in Gebeng soon. The date to watch is June 30, 2011, when these experts are scheduled to submit their report and recommendations to the Government of Malaysia. That's two Thursdays from now.

The experts were appointed by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). And the Malaysian government has promised to make the IAEA report on Lynas public.

If the IAEA says Lynas is UNSAFE, I am sure the Government will abandon the project. We must all make sure of that. But if the IAEA says Lynas is SAFE, do you think the anti-Lynas movement will cease to be? Uh uh.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

SEQUEL 1. Lim Guan Eng government's plans to hold elections for Penang's Islamic officials did not happen. The Agong, whose consent the state government should have sought on behalf of the island's Chief Minister, has said NO GO. The formerly gung-ho Abdul Malik Abul Kassim (pic), state government's Exco in-charge of religious matters, is quiet like a mouse.

SEQUEL 2. The blog posting Pas spooks Umno on Islamic state is most baffling. As we all know, the Islamic party recently dropped its faithful pursuit of an Islamic state. A matter of priorities, the leaders declared. To the layman, Pas has been forced to abandon its dream of turning Malaysia into The Islamic State of Malaysia. The DAP, its ally in Pakatan Rakyat, is dead against an Islamic state. Over the dead bodies of some of its leaders.

Anyone can see that that Pas has spooked itself on the issue of Islamic state. A DAP leader has told Pas, over his dead body. Everybody else, including (or especially Umno) has been trying to talk Pas out of it and now, finally, Pas is listening.

Friday, June 17, 2011

The late Captain Yusof, who ran the blog The Ancient Mariner, never claimed to be a prophet but his posting Another PKFZ In the Making now feels like an epic Nostradamus prediction. The shit has hit the fan down south. The Singapore Business Times reported on Wednesday (read here) that Asian Petroleum Hub Sdn Bhd, which runs the RM1.4 billion Asian Petroluem Hub (APH) in Johor, has fallen under receivership. A trail of sub contractors are facing bankruptcy and if some RM 2 billion is not pumped into the project, at least two state-linked public listed banks will be forced to make hundreds of million ringgit in writedowns.

If they had listened to the Captain and taken action then, perhaps today APH won't be facing a complete nervous breakdown and Malaysia wouldn't be a laughing stock in Singapore.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

"If ICC is really for justice why don't they investigate the very well documented war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine...we believe most African countries share our opinion on this."

Someone had to set the record straight. Quite a few Malaysians had jumped the gun after a wire agency reported that Omar al-Bashir, the Sudanese President on an international tribunal's "Wanted" list, would be coming to Malaysia for the Langkawi International Dialogue. I know some of them, too, and feel very embarrassed for them.

But a war criminal did come to Malaysia not too long ago. He is Tony Blair, the former UK Prime Minister, who together with George Bush Jr told the Americans, the Britons and the rest of the world about the existence of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq and used this as an excuse to attack the country, murdered thousands of Iraqis, and hang their President. As it turned out, there was no WMD in Iraq to start with.

Mosque officials in Penang undermining the Yang diPertuan Agong? I suggest you read the scientific appreciation on this matter by the blogger SatD, H E R E. As usual, he resorts to graphic (not just in terms of language) to make a complex subject simpler for all of us to understand.

The conduct of the Islamic Council of Penang should be investigated. If they are defying the Agong's authorities here, they ought to be sacked. Nobody is above the Federal Constitution.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

RM1.8 million Facebook. When a reporter asked me yesterday about the Tourism Ministry's RM1.8 million Facebook called Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia, I immediately opened the page. My initial response was, "Looks like any Facebook page .. doesn't feel like RM1.8 million to me". Then I noticed the apps and asked her to call me back in 10 minutes so I could fool around with the apps. Half an hour later, I told her the page still looked like any Facebook page but the apps, which not revolutionary, are quite fun. Simple but OK. "But is it worth RM1.8 million?", she asked me. I said if it brings in tourists, it may be worth millions -- even billions -- of ringgit. Tourism brought in over RM50 billion in receipts for the Malaysian economy every year.

I have written about Curi-Curi Malaysia: The Most Expensive Website In the Worldi with regards to another initiative during the tenure of another minister in-charge of our tourism. The posting was made in September 2008 and the initiative was supposed to cost RM36 million. In the case of the RM1.8 million Facebook apps project, it seems too small an investment in the social media. The ministry spends millions and millions on ads and promo campaigns using traditional media -- newspapers, tv, billboards, the London bus, etc. It should be putting its money in the new/social media, not just Facebook apps but also Twitter, blogs, credible news portals like The Malaysian Insider, etc.

A more holistic approach means bigger spending but also better returns. And as long as the returns are good and the processes above board, it will not matter if the Ministry spends RM18 million or RM80 million. I asked the reporter it would be good if her article can compare the Facebook investment with how much other countries are doing and how much they are spending on the Social Media to promote tourism.

I have not see a copy of today's The Malaysian Reserve so I have not read her article, but I've managed to come up with some interesting facts:

1. ClickH E R Eon Australian government's heavy use of Social Media. They have set aside a budget of A$150 million over the next three yearsto manage a social media campaign to attract tourism to Australia. That's a lot of ringgit and should excite our big spending minister, Yen Yen, but YB please don't get over-excited, eh.

2. Our poorer neighbor the Philippines, which has drawn many Malaysian tourists especially the men, spends 100 million pesos or about RM7 million on social media to promote tourism, including attracting more Malaysian men to cum instead of going to Jakarta, Medan or Bangkok.

3. Pepsi is spending RM20 million on Social Media to rejuvenate. The campaign is called The Pepsi Refresh Project.

Additional reading: The Rise of the Social ad Spending, click HERE and HERE.

p.s If some links don't work, please Google. To paraphrase Anthony Loke (DAP-Rasah), even a 6-year old can Google it.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Talk about IPPs and the names Francis Yeoh, Syed Mokthtar al-Bukhary and Ananda Krishnan come to mind instantly. There are other indie power producers but these gentlemen stand out because they are three of the country's wealthiest men. They were already very loaded even before the IPP deals were dished out but they have been more loaded since, or so we're told.

What many of us do not realize is that the deal for YTL is beginning to become NOT as lucrative for Francis Yeoh as it used to be. Because of the nature of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) that he signed with the Government back then, YTL is now forced to sell electricity to Tenaga Nasional at below market price!

Betul ke? Is the PPA going to make Francis Yeoh poorer? What about Syed Mokhtar and Ananda?

I'm all for a full disclosure of the PPAs as I think it is in the Government's interest to be fully transparent. Umno Ku Li's call for Royal Commission of Inquiry on IPPs, strongly supported by DAP's Lim Guan Eng, should be considered; after all, the Cabinet is also studying the IPPs. We want to know everything, not just if Anwar Ibrahim, who was Finance Minister then, had actually told Tenaga Nasional to keep its protests about a PPA to itself! Read You Diam, Ini Urusan Kerajaan!

REPORTED: Rais' ministryallocated RM100 million to celebrate 2011 Artistes' Day held on May 29, 2011PERCEPTION: Rais blew half year's budget in one day as spun by Lim Guan Engand dad Lim Kit SiangTHE FACTS: 1. The ministry did not spend RM100 million [I heard it spent less than RM10 million for the event, but this is not a fact ... yet]
2. The RM200 million allocated last year comes under Creative Industry Fund and is a low-interest loan scheme. [see here for details as announced by Najib Razak last year]

BEATING PERCEPTION. Why Rais Yatim can't come out instantly to throw out the rubbish that the Lims have been dishing out on this matter beats me. Our Information Ministry must be able to act faster, or perception will be regarded as the truth (for example, see ..cut Rais Yatim's pay by Malaysiakini).

I hope the minister is not thinking of ANOTHER legal action because if he is, he would have to sue Bernama, the national news agency which came out with the erroneous report. Bernama comes directly under Rais, just in case he does not know that also ...

Friday, June 10, 2011

Original posting:
SMS received 4.25pm today: I have received news that d PM went 2 Kazakhstan 2 arrange his daughter's wedding. Betoikah?

Dahi Hitam dan menantu dari Kazakhstan. I'm still getting text messages asking me if it was true. These are people who don't read the mainstream media, obviously. If so, they should read Pasquale's post H E R E about PAS MP YB Dzulkefly Ahmad's "blackened forehead" and what this phenomenon had to do or nothing to do with an accusation about the Prime Minister using public funds to attend a daughter's wedding in to a son of Kazakhstan.

I don't usually agree with Pasquale but he has attached with his posting a press statement by the Foreign Ministry that explains Najib's visitto the Central Asian country, which is to attend the annual World Islamic Economic Forum. There was no wedding. The engagement is scheduled for later this month, in Malaysia.

“The report also indicates that Syamil was shot on the forehead at a 45-degree angle ... That can only happen if the boy was kneeling when he was gunned down." - PKR lawyer N. Surendran

IN WHAT IS BY FAR ONE OF THE MOST DAMNING ACCUSATIONS made against the Royal Malaysian Police, lawyer N. Surendran openly challenged the police to prove that the three youths they gunned down last year were not killed execution style by the cops. Surendran said he got copies of the post-mortem report which suggested that the youths were shot dead at close range by the police. The 1968 pix of this brutal police execution of an alleged Vietcong guerilla came to my mind. Scary. What's even more scary is the cops are not responding quickly and firmly to this very serious accusation.

Surendran made the allegation at a press conference at the PKR headquarters attended by relatives of the youths and several politicians [ReadH E R E.]who did not have to be there but that's besides the point, as the point is such a serious accusation, especially coming from a lawyer, must be substantiated. Surendran must lodge a police report and provide proof as soon as possible so that action can be taken as soon as possible.

The PDRM must respond immediately to the allegation. The AG's Chamber need to comment. Home Minister, please speak up, we can't hear you. Keeping mum is NOT an option when you are being accused of harboring killers in uniform!

Wednesday, June 08, 2011

YB stands for Yang Bingai. Sometimes.. Like when DAP Asseblyman for Sungkai, YBA. Sivanesan describes as"a political gimmick" the scholarships the 1MDB is giving to 500 students to further their studies in local varsities. Sivanesan proves yet again that there are as many morons among politicians from "this side" as there are from "the other side". Instead of thanking the Almighty for showing the authorities the way to help pay the varsity education of the 500 students who failed to qualify for PSD scholarships despite scoring 8As in the SPM exam, this YB calls it "an attempt by the government to fish for votes in the coming general election". Whether they are from BN or Pakatan Rakyat, politicians like Sivanesan should not be allowed to go further in their political career if we want this country to progress.

The 500 students who will benefit from the 1MDB scholarships will be grateful, I'm sure, not to any political party or politicians, but grateful to be Malaysians a land with great opportunities. These stiudents are not by-products of a political gimmick, they are beneficiaries of our success as a nation, and on them we rest our hopes for a better future.

As for 1MDB, syabas for coming to the students' rescue. But we all know giving scholarships is not 1MDB's raison detre. The corporation's success will not be determined by giving out 500 or even 5000 scholarships but some of us are of the view that since the students are probably its best investment decision to date, the 1MDB might as well make the scholarships a permanent fixture.

Friday, June 03, 2011

Social activist Fahmi Fadzil (you can follow him on tweeter at @fahmi_fadzil) wrote something in his tweets about a friend's pregnant wife quitting her job at Blue Inc. and how it had something to do with the HR policies of the publishing company based in Petaling Jaya, or something to that effect. There must have been a letter of demand sent by the company to Fahmi as a result of that tweet. In most instances, the company would sue for defamation but in this one the two parties settled out of court, with Fahmi agreeing to do 100 tweets apologizing for his original tweet. I thought it was a nice way out, and ultimately good for freedom and fairplay. Based on my own experience, a defamation suit would silent the writer for years, force both sides to waste a lot of money (which will cause the one with less money to suffer more), and damage rapport.

So kudos to both Fahmi and Blue Inc.

Earlier, in another sphere, a rare Lee Kuan Yew-style apology from Lim Kit Siang [read JMD'sLim Kit Siang offended the "tuan rumah". What else is new?] after being lashed kow-kow by Sabahan politicians who had invited him to address their function but ended up being ridiculed by the DAP man.

“If people think I was very harsh, that was not my intention. I apologise,” Lim said two days after his speech at a DAP organised Kaamatan dinner gathering held last Friday. Read more H E R E.

Thursday, June 02, 2011

OLD and NEW MEDIA, remembered and recognized. For the first time, online journalists will be officially recognized when the National Press Club, which is a group whose members are mainly MSM journalists, picks the year's best journalists next month.

During a press conference to announce the event this morning, I was asked what makes a winner. I said the judges will be looking at various merits but at the end of the day the journalist must have left a great impact on not only society but also on journalism itself, through his/her writing and deeds. Last year during the inaugural event, for example, P. Gunasegaram fo the Star and Zaini Hassan of Utusan Malaysia were Journalists of the Year award. Both are known to be "outspoken" in their writings; in fact, Guna had then just been ticked off by the KDN for his column and Zaini was facing multimillion ringgit suits for his views published by the newspaper at the time.

The Blogger of the Year award was confined to telco bloggers last year. This year, it is opened to all bloggers.

A panel of judges led by a former High Court judge will decide the winners of these four categories.

There are 3 other awards: 5. The 1Malaysia Tan Sri Nasimuddin award 6. The Media Lifetime Achievements award, and 7. The Media Legend award. The 1Malaysia award is meant for the most inspiring newsmaker of the past year; the Lifetime award recognizes a practicing journalist's contributions to his/her society and profession; while the Media Legend is the NPC's answer to the Malaysian Press Institute's Tokoh Wartawan Negara award.

The late Tan Sri Samad Ismail, who was also the first Tokoh Wartawan Negara, was named Media Legend last year to set the benchmark.